Work-holder.



No. 774,480. PATENTED NOV. 8, 1904. A. LE BLANC.

WORK HOLDER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 4, 1904.

N0 MODEL.

5 es 606" V T e 67 6C 5 flaiaawze/s 719- 6. M. J I I Patented November 8, 1904.

PATENT Trice.

ARTHUR LE BLANC, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

WORK-HOLDER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 774,480, dated November 8, 1904.

Application filed April 4, 1904.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR LE BLANO, a citizen of the United States, residing at l/Vorcester, in the county of lVorcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Sewing-Guide and Work-Holder, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a construction which has been designed for holding pieces of cloth or other flexible material in position to be sewed or otherwise worked upon.

The especial object of this invention is to provide a strong, simple, and inexpensive sewing-guide and work-holder for the assistance of seamstresses, tailors, or other persons required to handle comparatively long strips or pieces of cloth or other flexible material.

To these ends this invention consists of the sewing-guide and work-holder as an article of manufacture and of the combinations of parts therein, as hereinafter described, and more particularly pointed out in the claims at the end of this specification.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a sewing-guide and workholder constructed according to this invention, and Fig. 2 is a side view thereof.

In many of the operations which have to be performed upon pieces of cloth or strips of other flexible material it is desirable that the material operated upon should be stretched or held under tension. For example, in basting up seams along the edge of a piece of cloth or in ripping open work for repairs or other purposes a seamstress or other person doing the work will frequently pin or fasten the work to the knee, so that a comparatively short section can be pulled back and stretched to facilitate the operation of ripping or to insure the sewing up of straight seams. By temporarily pinning the Work so that it can be held in this manner the work may be held with the required tension; but as only a small length can be operated upon at a time the work has to frequently be unpinned, moved along, and repinned or fastened.

The especial object of this present invention is to provide a sewing-guide and work-holder which can be used as an attachment for a table and which is so constructed that the work Serial No. 201,385. (No model.)

can be freely moved forward or advanced, but will be held with suflicient tension against backward movement so that the same will be held with the desired tension for stitching, basting, or otherwise operating upon the same.

A sewing-guide and work-holder constructed according to this invention comprises a stationary clamp-plate and a movable clampplate, said clamp-plates having engaging surfaces which are inclined with respect to the direction of motion of the movable clampplate, whereby the clamp-plates will open and permit the work to be freely drawn forward, but will close with cam action to prevent the Work from being drawn back.

In the specific construction herein illustrated a sewing-guide and work-holder constructed according to this invention comprises a substantially T-shaped bracket or fixture. The vertical member 10 of the T-shaped bracket is provided with fastening-arms 11 and 12. Threaded into the lower fastening-arm 12 is a clamping-screw 13, by means of which the bracket may be fastened to the edge of a table or other support. The horizontal member 1 L of theT-shaped bracket forms a fixed clampplate. Extending up from one end of the fixed clamp-plate 14. is an overhanging supportingarm 15. Pivoted on a screw or rivet 17 in the supporting-arm 15 is an inverted-T-shaped piece. The horizontal member 16 forms the movable clamp-plate. The engaging faces of the fixed clamp-plate 1a and the movable clamp-plate 16 are inclined rearwardly--that is to say, the engaging faces of the stationary plate 14 and movable plate 16 are inclined with respect to the swinging motion of the movable elamp-plate 16, so that when the work is moved forward in the direction indicated by the arrow the clamp-plates will be separated, but when the work is drawn back the movable clamp-plate will close with a cam action, so that the same will grip the work firmly and hold it in place to be operated upon. The

swinging clamp-plate 16 is provided with a thumb-piece 21. A spring-arm 18 is preferably employed for normally holding the movable clamp-plate in its closed or operative position. Pivoted on the rivet or screw 17 I also preferably employ a thumb-piece or lever 20, which, as most clearly illustrated in I Fig. 2, is slotted to receive a pin or stud projecting from the swinging member. By throwing down the thumb-piece or lever 20 the movable clamp-plate will be held out of operative position, so that the work may be moved freely in either direction. The movable clamp-plate 16 may then be released to clamp and hold the work while successive lengths thereof are operated upon, the movable clamp-plate swinging open to permit the work to be drawn forward, but gripping the same with cam action, so that the work will be held and cannot be drawn back.

I am aware that changes may be made in the relative proportions and arrangements of parts in a sewing-guide and work-clamp constructed according to this invention by those who are skilled in the art without departing from the scope of this invention as expressed in the claims. I do not wish, therefore, to be limited to the construction I have herein shown and described; but

What I do claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is

1. As an article of manufacture, a workholder, comprisingasupporting-clamp, an u pright arm, a fixed clamp-jaw extending from opposite sides of the upright arm, the fixed clamp-jaw and upright forming a T-shaped structure, and a pivoted inverted-T-shaped movable clamp-jaw cooperating with the fixed clamp-jaw so that the pull applied to the center of the clamp-jaws will be substantially in line with the vertical support.

2. As an article of manufacture, a workholder, comprisingaT-shaped piece, the horizontal member of which forms a fixed clampjaw and the vertical member of which forms a support having a fastening-clamp at its lower end, a supporting-arm extending in from one end of thehorizontal member of the T-shaped piece substantially to the center thereof, an inverted-T-shaped clamp-jaw pivoted thereto so that the pull applied to the center of the clamp-jaws will be substantially in line with the upright support and a spring for holding the jaws closed.

3. As an article of manufacture, a work holder comprising a substantially T-shaped piece, the horizontal member of which forms a fixed clamp-jaw and the vertical member of which forms an upright support having a fastening-clamp at its lower end, a supportingpiece extending in parallel with the horizontal member of the T-shaped piece substantially to the center thereof, an inverted-T-shaped jaw pivoted. to the supporting-piece so that the pull applied to the center of the clampjaws will be substantially in line with the upright support, a horizontal spring engaging the pivoted clamp-jaw to normally hold the jaws closed, and a pivoted opening-lever having a cam for holding the jaws open.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ARTHUR LE BLANC.

\Vitnesses:

LOUIS W. SOUTHGATE, PHILIP W. SoUTHeA'rE. 

